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Bridesmaid sewing: V.1 - adventures in couture sewing

I feel like a fraud writing couture sewing - do real couture seamstress consider using the serger instead of binding seams? Or think that silk organza is a scratchy itchy seam binding? Or use plastic boning stitched into seams?!

Anyway, I started fitting and sewing the first practise run of the bridesmaid dresses. I'm using Simplicity 4070, its the only pattern I have with a lace overlay which means I don't need to draft anything.

I'm pretty much following the instructions out of the Bridal Couture book so cut everything with big wide seam allowances and marked the stitching lines with wax tracing paper.

I underlined the georgette with muslin which gave it a bit of body and let me catch stitch down the seam allowances. I wanted to add in boning and had a big roll of rigeline in my shelf - I used two strips on either side of each seam except for the very front seams where I only used one. Its smoothed out the bodice nicely. I left it too late to add channels so just stitched it into the seam allowances before they were catch stitched down.

It did originally make the bust seam sit out a bit too far but I found this awesome post on pattern review and went back and unpicked the boning and eased it in and now its sitting perfectly.

I planned on using silk organza to underline the lace but since this lace is fairly stable I didn't need to. This is my second version of the lace - the first I tried using silk organza to bind the seams but didn't like the look or feel so French seamed the lace and then made my own bias binding to finish the neck and armhole seams

Notes to self;I eased in stay tape to the front top of the bodice but next time I need to be a bit more aggressive with the easing Either add more boning or interface the underlining - Its not quite stiff enough.Starch the hell out of the georgette!Remove all the thread basting - yes it gets hidden but it just looks messyIron the rigeline flat first - its bowing the side seams out.

I've just pinned the skirt on here - I want to change the pleats to gathers (I figure it will be more flattering to C's pregnant belly).

I'm hoping to get the skirt finished and insert the zipper this weekend.

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I seem to be going back through my old patterns lately and sewing them up! I made this as the blouse a couple of years ago. I always wore it with a wide belt though as it had a tendency to poof out on my stomach so I got rid of it in the big wardrobe cull of 2015.
This time I wanted to correct the things that bothered me with the first version - added a waistband to eliminate the poofyness, used smaller bias binding to make the binding sit smoother, got rid of the darts and added princess seams. Otherwise its a fairly similar colour palette - purple ponte and a basic black lace!

Pattern details;

Size 14
Added 1" FBA Changed darts into princess seams
Added the waistband.
Dropped the neckline by 1"
Left out the zipper (hooray for ponte!)
Sewed the side seams last and took it in by 1/2" each side.
Took 1.5cm out of the bodice length (once the skirt was added the weight dropped it all too low)
Made the length somewhere in between the short and long length.
Added pockets f…

This is version 2- I managed to overfit Version 1 plus I ended up hating it so much I never finished lining it or hemming it!

Some quick dress details;

Bodice from Simplicity 4070
Sleeves from Vogue 8943
Skirt is just the width of fabric gathered.
Rigelene boning in the back and front seams.

Adjustments;

Size 18
1" FBA
1" Back width
1" bicep adjustment

Fabric;
Lace from Clear It in Melbourne
Chiffon and Lining from Lincraft

The dress was constructed from directions in Bridal Couture - there is a muslin underlining which is overlayed with the lining then the chiffon - my lace has a purple undertone that I couldn't match with plain chiffon but with the purple lining layered underneath it matches pretty well.

I catch-stitched down all the seams and fell stitched in the lining. First time I've used prick stitching instead of understitching and I'm really happy with it.

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